#Jaw Crusher

[vibratingskull]

The present

Thrawnxf!reader

You have a gift to celebrate the promotion of a certain Grand-Admiral, the perfect time to reflect on your first encounter.

You were smiling to yourself inside your allocated cabin. You finally got the perfect present for Thrawn, one that you were sure he didn’t have in his private collection.

You have been chasing this piece for several months since you've heard of it and now you had it in your hands. You were proud of yourself, these items are rare nowadays and sold for fortunes at auctions… The same occurred in the black market, but threats supported by a Vice-Admiral’s plaque ensured you a decent discount. With the help of a few friends in the Ministry of propaganda your gift had been authenticated and restored in record time. Now you possessed a real museum piece, a witness of past times.

Despite the both of you being in your ninth year within the Imperial Navy, Thrawn had become your superior. He made a huge impression on you when he arrived at the imperial academy with the cadet Eli Vento. An unprecedented case! An alien and a rookie from the Outer Rim, popping in during the last three months of the formation and walking off as Valedictorian, with a rank of Lieutenant and a personal aid.

A lot of the military students were more than happy to strangle him and his rookie pal. Many both enraged and amused at this grotesque situation, how on earth could this blue freak could lead the imperial formation? Some of them decided to test the waters and see how far they could get with harassment, needless to say some got burned at this petty game and Orbar paid for all the others.

You weren't sure what actually happened. Some claimed after his humiliation at the metallurgy lab he sent a group of his friends to ambush and frightened the duo, others said they planned to kill them all along. Everybody added their own spin to the story : it was a fistfight, then someone murmured they all had blasters, Eli would have been wounded by a blade, then he wasn't even here in the first place…The story was a mess.

The real mystery started when the three aggressors simply vanished from the imperial academy. Nobody knew what happened and everyone held Orbar responsible, although behind closed doors, there were sordid rumors: Thrawn would have shot them and simply disposed of the corpses. Even worse, maybe he kept the bodies in his room to feast on his enemies

Pure bullshit!

No need to be a genius to know that if someone came to die within an Imperial Military Academy the perpetrator would be punished in the most exemplary manner. Even Orbar with his high relationship network would endure a hard time, so an anthropophagic alien, alone and isolated…

But no, Thrawn was still free of his movements nevertheless, no odd and mysterious military task force came to dispose of him, so… Maker knows what happened to those boys!

Nobody actually believed those silly rumors, yet the thrill will always be more entertaining than the dull life in the army, and they still impacted the daily life of your friends, well future friends at that time, nonetheless.

Students were now removing themselves from his path, heads low and whispering behind his back, too intimidated by this strange being that seemed to disprove everything the Empire taught them about aliens. If Eli felt relieved and enjoyed his newfound peace, Thrawn still looked unbothered. In fact he always acts like that, whether he is despised or feared, as long nobody gets in his way he is imperturbable.

You talked about the rumors with Eli and his expression when you exposed the theories of your comrades was to die for! A mixture of surprise, shock and disbelief twisted his face in the most comedic way! You both still laugh about this conversation years later. He never revealed to you why or where the three thugs disappeared, even years later he just says it’s a mutual secret between him, Deenlark and Thrawn. Never mind that, you later discovered their students files in the database of Skystrike Academy during an official inspection shortly after your promotion to Commodore.

To this day, you were still fond of the way Eli talked about this "secret" between him and Thrawn. You were truly pleased by the turn of their relationship. Back when you were pushing yourself onto the duo, Eli just played cool to accomplish his duty of translator in the most peaceful way.Their dynamics took a hit when he learned his assignment under Thrawn's command instead of the supply officer position he wished. He terribly suffered off this situation, telling you he had the feeling Thrawn had robbed him of his life and choices. He was in the Academy because Thrawn asked for it and he was once again dragged to the other side of the galaxy because Thrawn suggested it. You sincerely believed it would end extremely bad between them. It wasn't the unique thing to poison their relation, Eli had the sentiment to be invisible next to him. From his alien nature to his military prowess, Thrawn tends to steal the spotlights, and Eli saw himself reduced into the role of puppet to the eyes of the others and they tried to utilize him as such… Fortunately, Eli is more intelligent than what they gave him credit for and he turned off the vultures.

It tooks several assignments for Eli to understand why Thrawn needed him at his side. If Thrawn had the brain, Eli had the guts! Thrawn is intelligent, yet all genius he can be, his tactics are solely based on his knowledge and understanding of the situation. One misinterpretation on his side and everything collapses, therefore, he tends to freeze in front of the unexpected and the vagaries. Put it simply, improvisation is not his forte. That's when Eli comes to the scene! Despite some alleged weakness in direct combat, Eli possesses an incredible survival instinct. He apprehends every situation with his tripes more than anything else, which confers him a significant advantage when hazard comes messed up and jeopardizes Thrawn's initial plans. His reactions are primal, instantaneous and effective. It has already saved you three several times and them both even more.

Time has passed since then, and you were proud of the man your friend has become. More assertive, even witty sometimes and a significant boost of self-confidence. His relation with Thrawn is now more balanced and fair than ever, and it shows during their missions together. Their trust in each other was heartwarming. They are an excellent team!

You missed Eli since his departures for a confidential mission near the Unknown Regions. Sent away by Thrawn, obviously.

Thrawn…

What a character. Since you knew each other, he always profoundly confused you in… every way possible.

To be honest at his first day at the Academy, he made you laugh or rather you laughed at him. He was completely out of place, in so many ways. Because of his alien nature, obviously, but above all he was undeniably an already well trained and competent soldier… Why did he have to go back to a school full of angry and spoiled gremlins in their twenties?

How old was he at that time anyway? You think he was already approaching his forties, you couldn't be one hundred percent sure. His stoic face hardly gave away his age, and years barely affected him. You didn't have the same chance.

Anyway, after the entertainment he provided you the first day he arrived, you didn't care about it for some time. The other students may have enjoyed the luxury of losing their time to bully someone; you did not. You've worked hard to gain access to this school; you were now working yourself to exhaustion to be the best at graduation. Much like Eli, you weren't from Coruscant nor from the borders of the Outer Rim either. You were the "provincial" one, from a planet too far to be a part of the core worlds and too close to be considered exotic…

You couldn't count on a network like some of your comrades to enter the academy. You were granted a scholarship after your results in the Global Exam. This also meant your place in the hierarchy of students was low, and you were a victim of bullying. At least until a certain incident that will give you your nickname and build your reputation within the Academy as well.

So yeah, at first you didn't want to involve yourself with the two. You already had enough to do with yourself, but harassment at the scale of a class will ineluctably cause troubles within said class. Troubles that interfere with your work, therefore with your chances of success, and you couldn't tolerate it.

You were well aware of your reputation among your comrades but weren't afraid to play with it to be left in peace. So you didn't hesitate to intervene when you finally had enough of this whole situation.

One day at the cafeteria, Jamwest Cosblo decided he wanted a "friendly conversation" with the duo and went straight to them. From your place in the line, you couldn't hear the subject of the conversation, yet from the smirk or Cosblo and the decomposed expression of Eli you guessed he tried to impose himself as the new apex predator of the students food-chain now that Orbar was out of the league. Thrawn, always unshakeable, never raised his voice, steady and calm although Cosblo didn’t seem to care and started to get noisy. Apparently, he wasn't going to be satisfied by a simple chit-chat, and you started wondering how Thrawn could handle it. He couldn't reiterate his feat as in the metallurgy lab and Cosblo doesn’t believe in the virtues of diplomacy, you knew this firsthand, plus in a cafeteria overcrowd by bored young adults a quarrel between their new favorite and the feared pet peeve could escalated into a fight…

Your friends, in the line to be served too, started to lose patience and pressed you to get back on track, but it was a unique chance!

If Thrawn and Eli weren't accepted, they were at least tolerated because of the threat they represented. Meaning apart from some resentful hotheads like Cosblo, the mere student wouldn’t dare threaten them again. Cosblo, however, wanted to prove his power and influence by taking down those who ridiculed the former leader and avenged the three thugs whose status were still unknown at that time. His credibility was at stake. He will only achieve his goal if he succeeds against the primary menace, the blue alien who came to ruin the established order among the students. If he makes it and takes the leadership, the harassment will start again, worse than before for the other students will feel entitled to join the party. But if he failed now in front of his potential court, the duo should be safe from future assaults, and you could concentrate yourself on your studies.

Nevertheless, to be effective the situation must be solved by a student, not by the duo himself, either way it will just be a useless victory and not a meaningful action.

While you were actually curious to know what tricks Thrawn would have used in this situation, you decided to take the matter in your own hands.

You signified to your friends to not wait for you and to find them a seat already while you calmly head towards the blondie loudmouth. As you approached the conversation started to get clearer, Cosblo had stopped trying to be quiet a long time ago and drawn attention to them.

“I don’t know what artifice you will use against me, but it's not a stupid plaque that will prevent me from putting you back in your place, blueface!"

Haaaaa… Cosblo and his way of mincing his words, so peculiar. It is your personal gift to him, from a year ago.

"Am I to understand that you are ready to assault a superior over an ego competition?" Thrawn asked calmly. Despite that he had risen from his seat, understanding that logic was useless with a guy like Cosblo. He will need to use another language.

"Those badges only hold the power that we give them, and you…"

Cosblo drew his hand to Thrawn's chest. Oh oh!

"... Have no power here!"

Before his hand could reach its target, you grabbed his wrist, stopping him halfway through. He turned over to confront the one who dared to stop him and nearly choked himself while seeing you.

"J.C…"

You could feel the venom and his unbelief dripping from his tone. As you weren't involved in any of this prior, he didn't expect to see you take action.

"I think that's enough, Cosblo."

"What? What do you care about? Go mind your own business!" He hissed.

"Believe it or not, this is my business."

He snatched his arm from your grasp and lowered his head to be eye-level to you. Something that pissed you off tremendously.

"Since when? If I recall you were pretty chill with us toying with them, why this sudden realisation? You want to play the hero? You want to buy yourself a clean and renewed conscience? Or maybe…"

He lowered his voice to manage his effect, you would have gladly ripped off his smug face but you were here to avoid a public combat. It will have to wait…

"... Maybe you're just sympathetic to them? Does it remind you of some bad memories that you need to cope? To fight against the baddies oppressors will make you feel better?"

He turned the crowd and announced dramatically.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, J.C the heroine we need but didn't deserve!"

Forget about the face, it's his tongue you will rip off. You waited some seconds for the crowd to stop cackling a bit and you seized his shoulder to force him to face you.

"Very clever, Cosblo. But I'm trying to save your head, here!"

He didn't respond, just waited for you to explain with a disdain stare on his face. You were testing his patience and even more, his power.

"Listen. I understand your concerns. Since these two appeared everything started to crumble on itself. But you can't continue what you are doing…"

Now you were the one talking with a low voice, as if you shared a secret with him. You quickly glanced several times at Thrawn's and Eli to see what they were doing. Eli was pushing away some curious cadets and Thrawn was sitting back on his seat yet fully concentrating on you both behind folded hands. His sight dissequated every mouvements, every voice inflexions… In his observation, his eyes lingered at your legs for a strangely long second before locking his eyes right into yours. You turned back your head immediately. You knew you were doing this primarily for yourself but now you actually believed you were saving Cosblo skin!

What sort of gaze was this? You could feel it burn the skin of your back while talking to Cosblo.

"He managed to erode Corbar's authority and get rid of his opponents without suffering consequences, neither from the Academy nor Corbar's family… You can't do that with a simple Lieutenant plaque, his support must come from far higher than what we are all used to!"

Cosblo remained silent but his frustration was evident now that he understood his prey out of reach, well beyond his power. However, he hated most to be scolded like a five year old by a fellow ensign in front of all your comrades. In his plans, he should have been adored and praised by said comrades right now, after administering a well deserved correction to the alien freak… Instead, he was standing like a stud while listening to you why he should retreat before the alien. He could clearly see the interest fading on the eyes of the crowd and was legitimately ready to leave it at that but you had to add something stupid.

"So don't be a moron and give up while everything can be forgotten."

"Don't give me any orders!"

He gripped you by the collar with such force you were lifted from the floor, so suddenly you didn't know how to react. His eyes were flashing and his words were even more chopped.

"I'm tired of your games (y/n)... You need to be reminded of your rightful place. I will also take this opportunity to avenge myself from what you did last year."

By instinct you reached a hand to your boot, but you suddenly fell to the ground. So hard the impact cut your breath. Raising your head you see Thrawn keeping Cosblo on the table by the skull, preventing him from moving.

"I am sorry for this rude action, but I can not tolerate violence between students, especially if it disturbs others."

You get up with difficulties, coughing to get your breath back. The former excited crowd was now mute and stunned, waiting for the next action. You could clearly see them questioning themself: should they intervene? Should they let you all in peace? You quickly realised some were looking behind you and you followed their gaze to see Corbar.

He was here the whole time?

He observed the scene quietly, contemplating the idea of getting back on the top, knowing the students will follow him.

But for what good?

Finally, he simply sat down again to finish his meal in calm, followed by Turuy and then all the students. Peace, it will be.

But not for you.

Turning back again to retrieve your group of friends, you just met crimson eyes fixed on you. You couldn't determine what emotion Thrawn had, yet you knew you're going to hate his next words.

"Cadets, follow me. I will bring you to commandant Deenlark, he will decide for a punishment adequat for your misbehaviour. Both of you."

You would rather be shot straight through the skull than facing Deenlark again. Maker, what have you done? Is this what you get for trying to help others? Cosblo didn’t act proud either, you peered toward Eli for support but he signaled you to play along with a reassuring smile. You complied before Thrawn takes a “rude action” against you to get you moving and followed with a low head, disheartened.

The four of you were heading towards the commandant’s office in complete silence, excluding some painful whines from Cosblo. His bump with the table has awakened an old pain in his jawbone. You would have felt sorry for him to have to deal with pain AND Deenlark but you were in this boat because of him. Everyone for themself!

You sighed and followed behind Thrawn. It was the first time you were this close to him, that you get the chance to inspect him in detail…

You estimated his height to be around 1m80, more than almost everyone here, with some rare exceptions. His posture was impeccable, how did he manage to be this straight all the time? His back must hurt a lot at the end of the day!

Let see… Despite the uniforme you could perceive broad shoulders, long and well developed muscles for his arms and back, his chest seemed toned and firm, and his legs looked strong enough to crush a bone. You guessed he was a type of guy who favored using an electrostaff or his bare fists than a blaster to fight. Cosblo was either suicidal or just stupid to think he had a chance against Thrawn in a one-o-one combat, at least the three thugs knew they needed to stick together to hold a chance.

"Thank you."

"Huh?" You were distracted from your observation by a voice on your left.

"Thank you." Repeated Eli with a slight smile. "For your intervention. You're the first one to have said something."

"Oh! Well, your welcome. After receiving my reward I will make sure to never cross the path of your friend again."

"Everything is gonna be fine. Thrawn has the situation under control."

"If by under control you mean he's about to get me expelled, then yes! He got everything under control." You responded, sarcastically.

"No need to be bitter. I don't think he will support such an idea. As I said you were the only one who takes our defense and-"

"And it wasn't uninterested. Don't give me virtues I don't possess…"

"Maybe you had an idea behind your head, at the end of the day you took your stand against the mass for something you deemed unfair. He will take this in account while presenting your case to the commandant."

So this is how it appeared from a third point of view? Damn, you just wanted peace to work toward your graduation.

You had to query:

"In this case, why am I also to be punished?"

"You did involve yourself in a troubling peace bond situation, after all. Knowing Thrawn as I do, you should take this as a chance to defend yourself, he surely wants you both to have the opportunity to explain the core of the problem instead of Deenlark hearing deformed and exaggerated rumors of the incident. I mean, I think that's what he got in his mind…"

"Well tha-! ... Wait, that oddly makes sense."

It was indeed your best chance to bring all this to an end and to defend your case instead of passively accepting your punishment.

While you were reflecting on this, your group just got to an elevator and followed the most awkward moment in complete silence.

Enough time for you to determine another thing : Thrawn is hot!

In the most literal way!

Now that you were locked with him in an enclosed space you could feel warmth waves impossible for a human organism coming from him. He was irradiating the place. How high is body temperature actually is, 45°C? More? Why would his species need such a high body temperature?

And how Eli could stand 8 hours with him every night? Their room must be an oven!

…

You definitely wanted to tell a joke to break this stifling silence, but you advised yourself you'd better not… Too awkward.

You just cleared your throat, as someone does when they don't know how to break silence.

Which is even more awkward.

…

Why is this stupid elevator take so long?!

…

Finally!

You stepped out of the elevator with relief. You saw Deenlark's office at the end of the corridor and wanted to throw yourself back in.

"You were more bold a moment ago… J.C?" Eli noted.

"(Y/N), J.C. is just my nickname here."

"What does it stand for?"

"Jaws crusher."

He stared at you with wide eyes.

"Pardon?"

You bring yourself closer to him with a lower voice.

"Did you notice Cosblo's way of talking?"

He nodded.

"Well, a year ago him and his friends preyed on a lot of other students. The day he came for me I was in the tech lab with an adjustable spanner, a huge one… Since this day, he minces every word and I got my nickname."

He seemed to process the information.

"I assume this is how you properly meet Deenlark."

"Yep, Cosblo tried to get me expelled, but I used a security camera to clear my name. It's hard to pretend to be assaulted when you're four against one and you throw the first fist." You sighed. "Deenlark was furious, clearly he both classified us as disruptive elements. I don't think he will go easy on us this time."

"We will discover it in a second." Thrawn interrupted.

Since when he was listening to the conversation? You were sure to speak with quiet voices.

———————————

Your trial was finished, and you were relieved beyond words. You thought your future was sealed, that you would be expelled and sent back to your family without succeeding .

But no.

Thrawn was indeed impartiale when he exposed the situation to the commandant and didn't try to sink either of you two. It was quite refreshing in comparison to other superiors. Deenlark, however, was actually displeased to see you all four at the same time. The type of combination he had hoped not to deal with. Ever. He first seemed furious to be disturb in his work, then he just looked tired while seeing who he had in front of him. On the bright side he wanted you all out of his office as quickly as possible, so the lecture didn't take too long.

You get to stay here and complete your formation. You still received a chore : to help clean up the auditorium of your class during a month and Cosblo inherited the Paramedic class, aka the one where the dissections took place, for three months. He was so livid he could faint right there in the middle of the hall, while you were overjoyed by the result.

"Cadet Vanto, please help our comrade to the infirmary. I am sure he would rather pass out on a mattress than the floor." Thrawn inquired.

"I'm on it."

Eli gripped Cosblo's arm around himself to support him and, more or less, dragged him to the medic block.

As you were ready to go the other direction, a voice stopped you on your track.

"Cadet (y/f/n), may I have a word with you?"

You were tempted to say no and run off, but you knew better than getting on the wrong side of the chiss now.

"Yes, Lieutenant Thrawn."

Hum, it rolled weirdly on your tongue.

"Not here, we will need a more private place."

You followed him diligently to a small classroom with a dull light, wandering about what he could have to say to you.

After closing the door, he stood straight and crossed his arms in his back, confident like he was in conquered land.

"You are surely wondering why I ask you for a discussion."

You cleared your throat.

"I didn't properly thank you for your assistance with Cosblo, sir. Thank you sir."

You didn't let anything appear but it was really uncomfortable for you to be alone with him. Isolated, you were taking the measure of his person, his presence. You were slowly taking conscience of his menace.

"There is no use for thanking me, for I was protecting Cosblo from you."

What did he just said? You were the one yanked off the floor by the shirt, not Cosblo!

You were to question what he meant when you noted his eyes kept wandering to your legs again before he locked them back with yours.

"This is what I wanted to talk about with you. Do not try your little trick, you will not be able to pull through with a simple chore if you are caught."

What, in all the creation, was he talking about?

"Try what? Helping you?" You hissed.

He slowly shaked his head with a thin smile.

"I thank you for your intervention, however you can cease your bluff. I know you carry a blade in your boot. This is highly forbidden, but I suppose survival habits dye hard. I can understand that."

Wait! When had he noticed? You've always been careful to hide it. You take a step backward.

"How did you-"

"You are not the only one who observes her peers, Cadet (y/f/n). In fact, I found your profile fairly interesting." His smile was now a satisfied grin.

There was no threat nor mockery behind it but you still hated it.

"I have done my research on you, I have gathered some fascinating results."

"You had no right to do that!" You fumed.

"I do have it when I suspect an individual to be potentially dangerous. For example, someone carrying a weapon inside the Academy." He pointed.

You started to observe your options to get out of here. You realised he purposely chose a tiny room for you to feel trapped and it was effective. He continued without ever raising his voice.

"I wouldn’t have imagined the Imperial Academy would accept the granddaughter of a famous Drug Lord. I am most impressed you have been able to hide it to everyone else."

It sounded like praise but the floor just opened under your feet.

You have worked so damn hard to get here, to distanced yourself from your heritage as you parents did. A military career was perfect to clean your name to the eyes of society, and you're gonna sink and lose all your efforts trying to help a perfect stranger. The one who's gonna drown you.

"So what? You're gonna spread it to the other? Blackmail me? Use it for favors?"

Your voice cracked yet your fists were clenched. You had too much to lose. He may be a better combattant than you, but you were the one with a knife.

You stared at each other in silence. You felt his eyes burning your skin again.

"I will do none of that, you may ease your mind." He spoke gently.

"And why not? If I am what you say, why would you deprive yourself of the price of my capture?"

"Because I know the Empire has its ways with the Drugs Lords. If you are permitted here it is because it benefits someone else in the higher spheres."

"But this is why you can't drop me, not why you won't. Am I wrong?"

"It is because I am curious to see how a profile such as yours will turn on in this system. I am quite interested about what you could become."

He didn't tell you everything. Typically him. You didn’t know at that time he would always answer all the questions without telling the core of the information you're searching, ever. Despite all that you knew he had an idea in mind.

"I think we are done for today. We will meet again, Cadet (y/f/n)." He stated while maintaining the door open for you, letting the light enter.

You rushed out and yelled.

"We are done, period!"

You sprinted to your cabin without looking back. You entered it with such speed you almost slammed into Faro, your roommate.

"Wow! Easy (y/n), what's going on?"

You took a second to catch up your breath before you responded.

"I'm just escaping from a sociopath. Nothing unusual, Karyn."

"And who was it? So I can have a polite conversation with them." She requested with a mischievous smile.

You giggled and flopped yourself onto your bed. You liked this girl, she was two years younger and your little sister here. You would never let anyone harm her.

"The blue one. Don't go near him, I'm having a hard time seeing through him…"

"You mean Thrawn? I've already talked with him."

The sky just fell on your head.

"WHAT?! WHY?!" You yelled.

"I don't know for sure. He approached me after the Academics Exams for Freshmans, not long ago, with my results. He asked about you too." She recalled.

"What did you say to him?"

"Nothing specific, don't worry. But I couldn't let a superior without an answer."

"No, of course not. Just… Be cautious around him, okay?"

"Yes, mom!"

You had enough emotions for now, you needed to rest a bit.

All the evening played back and forth in your mind. Why did he need to search through students files and results? What does he get out of it, you were all just mere children in front of him.

You were most concerned by his discovery of your past, few authorities in the Academy were aware of your roots, even Deenlark wasn’t in the secret. How did he access these datas?

Without realising it, you falled asleep, exhausted from this roller coaster of emotions.

The next day was not the brightest either.

You just realised, by defending Thrawn and Eli you were now sided with them, that you liked it or not. Your group of “friends” wasn’t as welcoming and they passed most of their times ignoring and avoiding you. Only one was gracious enough to tell you it in the eyes. They prefered to cut all ties now rather than be associated with you from now on.

Nice.

Absolutely perfect.

You really had lost everything.

At noon, you were resigned to staying alone when you saw the duo peacefully eating.

You thought about it for two seconds and retraced your steps. Fuck this, there is no reason you were the only one to pay for all of this, and you wanted to clarify things with blueface.

You slammed your tray on their table with a large smile.

“Hi, you two!”

Eli startled, caught off guard, and Thrawn… Well he just saw you coming.

“Maker, (y/n)! What is wrong with you?” The first one shouted.

“What do we owe the pleasure, cadet (y/f/n)?” The second added with his usual nonchalant voice.

“You owe it to yourself, smartass!”

Thrawn merely raised an eyebrow and Eli nearly spat out. You sat in front of them, with giant grin

“You were crystal clear yesterday, you have enough on me to ruin my life. Well I’m not afraid. We can be two to play this game. Starting today, you will have me on your back nights and days. I’d repay myself a hundredfold, you can count on this.”

“And what is it supposed to be, exactly? A threat? A promise? Or a challenge?” He asked calmly.

You were almost sure to see a hint of amusement in his eyes, but who could claim to know what amuse this man?

“Anything that suits you most, sweetheart.” You responded sarcastically.

Silence followed,your eyes locked again.

You both stayed still, him testing your resolution and you didn’t drop your sight from his.

It was a battle of wills .

You didn’t know why he was doing all of this, but you knew exactly what you had to defend.

None of you could have told how much time passed that way, fixed into each other's eyes.

His iris weren’t simply red as his eyeballs, they were incandescent. You could swear they emited a slight glow, like a flame. Fixed on you, his pupils widened slightly, as black holes that could swallow anything within reach. Your skin was set ablaze once more.

What grands designs could be drawn behind those rings of fire?

You wouldn't have said the situation was comfortable, although for anything in the world you would have severed this… connection.

All your senses were muffled, your hearing was stifled and anything outside his fire orbs were blurred in your vision.

At this instant, nothing outside you two existed.

You.

Him.

And the universe that seemed to expand beyond his eyes.

You could have stayed like this for eternity.

Time itself seemed suspended, to carry this instant forever.

Unfortunately, he severed the link. He straightened up his back and answered as nothing happened.

“Do as you wish.”

You were taken aback by the brutal return to reality.

“Wait a second you two! I have a say in this story.” Eli intervened.

“I believe you would appreciate the presence of another human, one that isn't trying to stab us in the back.” Thrawn retorted.

“No! You can’t take those decisions alone.”

While they were squabbling you realised your eyes were itchy. None of you had blinked during this moment. Maker, that hurted. Maybe this moment didn’t happen judging by his facility to break it, maybe you played all this in your head.

Your eyes still hurt nonetheless.

They finally agreed, or rather Thrawn found a way to impose his logic on Eli again.

“Do as you want, in three months it will be your sole problem anyway.”

Thrawn remained silent at this, you used this opportunity.

“While our cards are on the table, Karyn told me you approached her. If I found out you harmed her in any way, I will make you regret it. Am I clear?”

“You do not need to worry about her, I have no ill intent toward your friend.” He responded, cutting into a slice of rare meat.

—————————————————

To say your relationship with Thrawn didn’t start with the best intentions was an euphemism.You used your time at the Academy to tame each other. You first firmly disliked him before you could sincerely say you respected him, then appreciated him, then...

Thinking about it, you had your fair share of notable experiences with him : a dissection, a health class about spatial venereal diseases (you were sure this one was a hazing from the teachers), a wild Graduation Ball were he kinda got drunk, the only time you saw him snap, your long evenings of studying for the final exams, all the times you and Karyn had to cover his traces because he was wandering elsewhere than his assignations, your promotions to all four, ect…

Your life was way more agitated than what you had anticipated. All thanks to one, singular person.

A scratching noise called you back in the present. You realise you were fixing your gift without doing anything. The scratch persisted and you could hear an odd rumble following. You rose from your bed to see what was at your door, and found nothing.

Curious…

Another guttural sound made you look down.

“Hi Rosu! What are you doing here my baby?”

You immediately started to baby talk to the ysalamir at your feet. You took her in your arms and she curled up all against you with a purr of contentment.

“How do you keep escaping your nest? Your daddy must be terribly worried. You wouldn’t want your daddy to worry, right?”

Does yasalmiry understand Basic? You could swear Rosu pulls out her tongue at you on purpose. Checking your chrono, you see it is almost time for your last personal report to Thrawn before your departure.

“I will bring you back to him. Climb on my shoulders, sweetie.”

You put her around your neck while taking your package. She croaked with enthusiasm and pawed your shoulder.

“Of course I have your favorite biscuits sweetie, what kind of aunt would I be if I didn’t?”

You handed her a bite of biscuit that she devoured immediately.

She had almost eaten half of the box when you approached the office of the freshly appointed Grand Admiral. You saw Colonel Yularen and Governor Pryce exit the room, you were not aware of their presence on the ship…

The guards gaved you back your cylinder and let you enter without investigating the reason of your presence, being part of the inner circle of Thrawn could give some advantages on the Chimaera.

The door opening announces your arrival and the hint of a smile appears when he sees you. It is the first time you met him in his new white uniform. It looks superb on him, really pleasant.

Now, let’s keep it professional.

"Grand Admiral Thrawn, I address you with my congratulations for your recent promotion." You made your heels boots resonate while you saluted him, putting the emphasis on his new title.

You like how it sounds.

"I thank you, Vice-Admiral (y/f/n)." He salutes back."I was wondering if you were coming to bless me with a visit before your departure."

"I was on my way to give you back a little rascal."

You kiss the forehead of Rosu before handing her back to him. He offers his arm for her to climb on with a relieved expression.

"There you are my beauty. You know it is not safe for you outside of my office."

She rubbed her head to his cheek to apologize, or to coax him, you will never know, it's a clever species. You let them cuddle to see her mate in their nest. Avaz was in the middle of a nap when he heard his partner croaks. He rose up to his feet and started to scratch the glass.

"Grand Admiral I think we have a couple to reunite."

You watch him manipulate and place back his ysalamir in the nest like she was the most fragile and delicate creature in the universe. There is so much delicacy in his mouvements and tenderness in his expression.

Who was the last person to treat you like that? Certainly not your last partners.

You observe how the two lizards cuddled to great one another, or rather you are observing him observing his dearest pets. It is rare to witness him lower his guard around others, even you. His genuine expression of caring and affection over his protégés never fails to melt your heart, you didn’t want to lose a crumb of it.

"What am I possibly doing for you to smile in such a way?"

Your smile widens.

"If I dared, Grand Admiral, you sound like a proud father." You whisper like a secret.

He chuckles while sitting at his desk, enjoining you to do the same.

"Now, Vice-Admiral (y/f/n), you firstly came for your report."

"Indeed." You quickly become formal and begin to share your findings. He listens to you respectfully behind his folded hands. "I have been observing Admiral Kassius Konstantine at your request since my affectation under his commandment almost a year and a half ago. The least I can say it's that he is driven by his ego and acts when it may be beneficial for his personal interest or his career. I still find his way of combat somewhat, how to say it… Merciful? He allows his enemies to flee for their life if he deems the game unworthy of his time. It has the merit to prevent useless loss of troops and assets, at least. "

"How can you affirm he intentionally let them retreat and not escape his grasp?"

"Because he still got results, his hunting count and victories are honorables. He is not the best, but he is efficient… When he wants to be."

"How every officer should be, however my requested presence here on Lothal tends to prove he is not enough. Anything else?"

"He comes from a politician family."

His eyelid twitches at this. One of the rare muscle reactions he is not able to control when he starts to get irritated. Imperceptible if you don't know him.

"What kind of politician family?"

"The kind to hate you, your strategics, your ways, your tactics. The kind who thinks anything as a price, everything is marketable from titles to lives. Especially lives for titles."

He let a silent sigh escape. He is anticipating some serious headaches.

"No need to be annoyed, his hunger for glory and success derives from an inferior complex. Surely he will prove himself to be a malleable spirit and a useful puppy once in your hands."

"Is it a pike of irony that I hear?" He point with an amused wry smile.

"I would never do such a thing, especially towards you Grand Admiral Thrawn." You bring a hand to your heart, pretending to be shocked."However, having another support in the political field such as him may be useful. Governor Pryce will not always be here and his family's influence outgrows hers on Coruscant. With all due respect Grand Admiral, you truly need someone to cover you up in the political domain. You might want to consider his potential."

"I am considering it."

He let himself slide in the bottom of his seat.

"If you need any other information, you can check this data card. I have gathered anything I could learn about him. From his day to day schedule to his favorite combat formation."

He took the card you handed him with an apparent satisfaction.

"Everyday I praise myself for not having you arrested when we were at the Imperial Academy. It would have been such a waste of your… Investigatory talents."

"Is it sarcasme that I hear?"

"I would not dare insult your skills, Vice-Admiral (y/f/n)." He politely replied.

As much as you appreciate him, his cockiness gives you the urges to rip off his smile sometimes. Other times, you would like to kiss it.

"I truly respect your abilities to always find what you are searching for, regardless of the object."

And still nothing on you and your life prior to the Academy, you thought to yourself. A real ghost.

"You are a valuable member of this team. I would not want your competences to rot or be wasted. So I will ask you to pursue your investigations on Konstantine and his crew, if you encounter someone with potential, let me know."

You have mixed feelings about this. You know it's his way to secure his position in the Empire. To infiltrate every layer down to their roots, with Eli as his diplomat and right hand, Commander Faro and Captain Pellaeon in the Navy, Governor Pryce in politics, Colonel Yularen in the ISB and finally you in the criminal underworld. He selects and places his pawns wisely to have ears and control in every layer of the State.

But the crew of Konstantine, your crew as well, is primarily composed of young recruits, some you have taken under your wing. You are not sure you want to expose a young person to a plan that you don't know the end.

"(y/n)?"

You raise your head with surprise. He rarely uses your name.

You came to understand through the years it was not usual in his culture and was rather reserved to related peoples. You first convinced yourself it signified nothing for him to call you by your name, that he was just getting comfortable around you as he was with Eli. Maybe human's customs had rubbed off on him after nine years. You first thought you were fooling yourself with illusions…

Nevertheless, you must now admit you were convinced he had other plans for you both.

You didn't get those ideas out of a hat. You had collected teeny details and "coincidences" during years that meant nothing separately, but drawn a different painting once assembled. Some dated back to your time in the Academy, things you saw as camaraderie or friendship.

He tends to be more talkative and open, relatively speaking, once his service is over.

His protection and your tiny privileges as his protégé that seem to grow gradually when you come back to him.

You know he felt a connection that day. He told you himself.

And you were utterly petrified by this idea.

What do you surely know about him? What you could swear was true in him?

Nothing.

Yet you were here, helping him although you were not officially under his command. Having his back and covering him everytime he did something deemed shady by other high-ranking officers. You know, deep down your mind, he is preparing something. He wasn't just exiled by his People like he pretended. He is serving a greater design that he doesn't talk to you about. Yet you follow every one of his commands, you advise him, berate him even, putting your career at risk by spying on his behalf. And for what?

To be with him. To stand at his side. To see his eyes shine with pride when your mutual efforts are rewarded by victory. To help write his legend and to be able to say "I was there" when you will tell these stories in the future.

What type of relation is this? Superior to subordinate? Two friends with different social status? A genius and his sidekick? A liar and his puppet? Or were you helping a parasite to suck up the Empire ressources?

You didn't know.

And he was still able to make you dance with his voice regardless.

"Yes sir, sorry sir. I will proceed as you ordered." You respond with a smile to cover your doubts.

"Very well. Any further questions?"

Oh yes, you have a question. A lot of questions.

Why did you send Eli to the Outer Rim? Why did he have to go alone? Why do you never talk to us? Do you actually trust any of us or is it a facade? Who are we to you? How does it happen that you still don't get how politics work here? How does it work where you come from? Where do you come from? Why have you never tried to contact your people in nine years? What is the truth behind your exil? Why do we know nothing about you? Do we matter so little to you?

Do

I

matter so little?

Will we ever talk about us?

Who are you really?

"None Sir. Everything is clear." You answer shortly.

"Perfect, therefore we are done here." He concludes with his usual composed voice. "You may go."

You both rise from your seats befo- Damn! You almost forgot.

"In fact Grand Admiral, I wanted to offer you something."

He raises an eyebrow, waiting for you to develop. You bend over to retrieve your fabric package and hand it over to him.

"This is a gift to celebrate your promotion and your nine years in the Navy."

His sight navigates between you and the package before taking it. You feel the tip of his fingers caress your hand for a split second. He weighs the gift with precaution while you remove your hand quickly, letting him evaluate the package in silence to prevent your cheeks from blushing as you both sit back.

You already have plenty of relationships, but somehow a light touch of him always lets you like you were striked by lightning. A simple gesture on his part could captivate you, a single word from his lips could command you.

Does he know how he affects you? You wonder. If he does, he hides it perfectly.

He inspects the pack from every angle, figuring out what was inside the fabric before he opens it. His movements slow down as he realizes what might be inside yet you can't fathom his expression.

He unwraps the cloth with great care, slowly discovering what you brought him.

He took several seconds to process what he had in front of him.

A book.

An ancient one on top of that.

It is an exceptionally rare item. The only ones he had ever seen were behind glass windows in museums or in private exhibitions by collectors.

He didn't think he would have the privilege to possess one himself.

He hesitates to manipulate it further, he does not want to damage this precious artefact, meanwhile his curiosity urges him to satisfy his hunger for knowledge and to dissect it right here and now.

Lost in his contemplation he stays silent, incredulous, letting you torturing yourself with questions.

You have imagined quite a few scenarios for this moment, but he didn't take this long to react in any of them.

Was this gift a good idea? You were not sure anymore.

Maybe it is too much for a promotion and a decade of friendship.

Wait…

It IS too much!

You have never seen anybody offering this just for a promotion! What were you thinking? Those get sold for millions of credits in auctions, even if you used your network in the crimeworld to get this one in a cheaper way, the risks you have taken and the value of the book you have chosen are just ridiculously high, downright indecent for the intentions you pretend to have.

If he tries to dig about it he might discover there is more than friendship and respect in your mind when you think of him…

"It is unexpected to say the least." He spoke.

Ouch.

"I am sorry you don't like it."

"Please do not misunderstand me."

He takes the book with careful precaution and starts leafing through it, his face cut with a thin smile.

"I appreciate your present, it is a most refined gift. But its value must have cost you a lot, did this occasion truly worth all the troubles? Or is there something you are not telling me?"

He brings his hand to his chin, a typical fashion of him when he investigates. You swallow quickly, regaining your composure by crossing your legs.

"I mean, I won't get the opportunity to celebrate a friend's promotion to Grand Admiral any time soon. I wanted to make it count with something that could hold on your esthete tastes."

He gazes into your eyes with his coy smile, without responding. His pupils widen, he is clearly enjoying the situation.

"Of course, I do apologize. I did not want to question your words, so many people come announcing their failure with offering to sweeter me."

You gesture your hand as if to say it's nothing.

He didn't buy your excuse and didn't bother to hide it from you. You're searching for a way to deviate the conversation.

"What an interesting material. It is not flimsi nor paper, right?" He asked, passing his hand on the edges of the page to feel all of it's asperities.

"It's vellum."

"Fascinating. What language might it be? I have never encountered it until now."

"Unfortunately, nobody knows."

He stops his investigations to gaze at you with a puzzled expression.

"This codex is unique. We know it under the name of "Voynich Manuscript" and is written date thanks to the Vellum that has been carbon-dated. The illustrations helped to cut it under sections, outside of that we can only speculate on the exact content of the text and it's real author."

You see him running his fingers on the hand-drawn figures, following the curves of a limb and exploring astronomical circles traced in a long-past age but still mesmerising today.

"It could give you some intellectual evenings trying to decode it and all its mysteries. It will resist you for sure, maybe you will be the one to unravel its secrets, maybe you will fail. I simply thought you would like to take a real challenge, but if your not up to it… "

He closed the book with precaution, grinning internally. After nine years he realises how far you have grown up, how you are now able to discern and manipulate the needs and the ego of your prey, himself included. He could take some time to admire his work on you.

He is proud of you.

"Thank you, Vice-Admiral. I will take great care of your present."

He rises from his seat to escort you to his door. You feel the ghost of his hand on your back, setting you ablaze.

"Please let me know if you discovered something about the book, I too am interested. Bye my babies!"

You wave at the ysalamiri in their nest, and like that you're gone to pack up and leave, without hearing his answer.

"You will be the first one to know, (y/n)..."

He let your name rolles on his tongue, as if he could taste it.

You just leave without greeting your superior, but he won't hold it against you. He deliberately tried to shake you,he could cut you some slack.

Whether he finds something or not, you just gave him the perfect pretext to call you on something else than work.

It would be a shame to selfishly keep this gem of history for himself when you can be two to enjoy it.

Far from all this ceremonial and protocol, on his own territory, he will have all the time that will please him to scrutinize you through this book.

Then, and only then, he will decide if he could take things further with you… Or no.

There are numerous things preventing him from doing so, some that he can't ignore and could have catastrophic consequences for both of you.

On the other hand, the sole hypothesis to be with you awakens a pain he wishes he could forget and simply ignored.

A characteristic pain in the chest and lungs.

He had already seen what happened to chiss who bypassed these symptoms.

He will need to act on that as well.

But for now he will indulge himself in your sole presence at his side and your endeavour to live up to his expectations.

It will be his unique fancy in this empire where all and everyone is a potential enemy.

His personal luxury.

@exoplorationn @bluechiss

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The trial part 1 : Get set

Part1, 2, 3

Thrawnxf!reader

It is the start of your exam and you're dropped with your team on a planet’s moon and must fend for yourself and fight the other teams to succeed the trial, but that won’t be so easy...

You're frozen in place, unmoving, eyes wide open and silent under the warm body of Thrawn. Eyes fixed on a point away, you’re pressed against his chest where you can hear his steady heartbeat and your heart could sing if only you were fully aware of your surroundings and not terrified at the same time. You start contemplating on how you ended up in this position…

_____________________________________________________________________

“... and after you took note of your last test’s scores we will follow on with the Final Exam of Simulation.”

A rumor spread around the amphitheater, some students laugh with excitement, others shudder in disbelief and some shrug their shoulders, uninterested.

“Quiet!” Barks the professor.

You don’t miss a beat and dive into the file to find your notes with a loud heartbeat. You hold your breath as you discover the results… And sigh with relief immediately, all positive. You turn towards Eli with hope, he doesn’t say a thing, he nods with a smile and you clap your hands as mutual congratulation. You bend over a little to see Thrawn and his scores, as per usual he’s revising his datapad with an olympian calm, nothing could disturb him ever. No need to talk to know he nailed his exams, he’s the most experienced after all. You tap his shoulder.

“I owe you a beer Sir!” You murmur.

“Thank you, I do not drink Cadet.”

“Well I owe you a drink anyway” You say slouching back on your seat, it’s the least you could do after he helped you with your course.

You look back at your scores: strategic, battle simulation, rifles… All the arts of war revealed under your eyes each with satisfactory numbers, those evenings with Thrawn and this weird tension definitively paid up!

You place back your datapad with a smile focusing on the ballet on the platform; your professor just gets joined by several other professors and persons you’ve never seen. Some take their seats while some discuss matters with low voices, others stare at the room with harsh eyes. You recognise the uniform of a commander of the navy with a gruffly face, a strikingly beautiful junior lieutenant is speaking with an equally handsome governor giving side eyes to the first row students. Why are those two so familiar to you? You’ve never heard their name but you could swear you’ve already seen them somewhere! But where? You focus on those two, this lieutenant woman with green eyes and raven black hair is whispering something to the ear of the wavy blondie ponytail guy with gray eyes, hiding an air of surprise behind a fan. Those two are weirdly out of place between those adults worn out by the years by their beauty and more strongly by their youthfulness here, they are much younger than their counterparts in the room. But where did you see them?

“You alright J-C? You're red…” Eli asks.

You blink in surprise, touching your cheeks heated by your blood. He looks in the same direction and a laugh like a snarl comes and shakes his shoulders.

“Okay! I Got you.”

You nudge him for teasing you.

“Listen up!” A professor shouted, starting a slideshow. “We’re gonna reveal to you the modalities of the trial. As you already know it will happen on one of the moons of the planet Athulla, more exactly the third one, and spread across seven days maximum. Your exam will consist of a regular spying mission where you will extract information from a subject. You will receive specific uniforms, motorized means and weapons for this particular occasion-”

“Ha!” You exclam yourself as a flash of realization touches you.

You know where you’ve seen these two fellows: they posed for the posters of the Empire for the navy and the bureaucracy for years where you lived. You grew up watching them incarnate the values of the regime.That’s why you feel they were familiar. You had such a crush on them when you were younger!

“Yes, Cadet? Anything interesting to add?” The professor asks, annoyed.

You realize you were not especially discreet and now everyone is turned towards you, wondering why you spoke up.

“No sir, sorry sir.” You immediately respond.

The governor hides a laugh behind his fan, while the lieutenant sighs irritated. Oops. Learn to shut up next time, you think to yourself.

“Each team will receive a cylinder of data. Protect it. Your objective will be to recover the data of an adverse team assigned to you. You will be tested.on your aptitude to adapt, on working as a team, your capacity to follow standardized protocol procedures and your final time. You are free to retrieve the data as you wish but remember this is a spying mission, the way to retrieve your objective will be scrutinized and evaluated as such so make the good choice. You will be parachuted to an area of 62 miles2 cut down in 7 zones, each day a new zone will become off-limit and everyone in this zone will be gassed and eliminated. Question?"

"What happens if we get badly injured?"

"The moon has been stuffed with cameras, if you find yourself incapacitated or unable to pursuit the exam a corvette will be send to take you back. Anything else?"

The classroom is deadly silent, so much you could hear a fly fly.

"Good. This year will be supervised by the Commander Marttilf and the junior commandant Hugtan," they respectively snort and nod at the mention of their name. "This exam is also sponsored by the Governor Satlove here present, he too will attend your trial with the other examiners."

The denominated Satlove straightens his back and slams shut his fan, making it resonate in the room. He displays a satisfied smile. You feel your heart pinch once again at this sight. His look and attitude clearly contrast with what is expected of an official member of the imperial government, whoever he is he has enough power or relations to be atop of all this.

Strangely, this thought makes you shudder on your seat.

“Remember this is an eliminatory trial. I will now give you your teams. Team A…”

Fixating on Satlove, you let your mind wander its way, thinking ahead about the exam you wonder how it will unfold, if you’re gonna get wounded or with whom you will go too. You remember the ball is right after that, you hope it’s gonna be okay.

“Team K : cadet Eli Vanto, cadet (Y/n) (Y/l/n), Lieutenant Thrawn,...”

You internally shout a yes and high five Eli, luck must be on your side to be with your friends. You bend over to high five Thrawn but squints at you, he nods his head in your direction and you lower your arm, feeling a bit alone suddenly.

“... and cadet Jamwest Cosblo.”

You choke hearing that. No! Between all your comrades, why this guy? You hear a shuffled yelp behind you, Cosblo looks at you, equally horrified. Maybe luck isn’t on your side…

___________________________________________

You clench your hand on your weapon, shaken by the ship you observe your comrades in their curious attire, silent, nobody dares raise their head too focused on what’s ahead. The uniforms lended for this exam consist of a black combination with weird solid globes on the limbs and vital parts of the body, a metal spine snake all the way on your back to your neck. Curious you poke the orb and are met with a hollow sound but can you feel the tension dilute on all your biceps, not sure what to think of all of it. Your weapons are not conventional either, they mimic a DLT-20A Blaster Rifle but the cooling vents are missing and the barrel is slightly thinner and longer, the weight is similar to any rifle but it seems empty, like some inner parts were missing… You’re stopped in your contemplation when a man in all gear just landed, to the surprise of most students.

“Alright, you’re on your way to Athulla’s moon and I’m here to brief you on those babies and your new pajamas.” He said, presenting his weapon. “You’re wearing a new prototype of simulation uniforms and armed with the special weapons that go with them.You’re the lucky few who will serve as guinea pigs, isn't it exciting?” He asks with a smile too large to be reassuring.

Nobody answers, uneased. He doesn’t appear high ranked, but sure seem excited to derust the rookies.

“Those bad boys use a specific non-lethal laser, if I do like this-” He just starts pressing the trigger randomly on the face of several students that dodge by reflex, scared to have a gun pressed onto their face carelessly. Loud clacks ring but no ammunition seems to be fired.”It doesn't do anything. You will need to aim at one of those orbs to get any result.”

A guy raises his hand.

“What does it do exactly?”

“Thanks for volunteering!” And like that, shoots him. The guy lets a scream escape as his arm drops immediately, inert, the globe flash red and flattened out with a sudden snap sound like all air has been sucked out. A gasp spread through the class. He ports a hand to his biceps with a yelp of pain.

“You will feel the same pain as a regular wound and it has the bad tendency to cut blood circulation with compression, I advise you don’t get shot in the neck.” He turns back to the guy. “You should have known better than interrupting me.”

The student does not respond, fold in two with pain he can just articulate a whine.

“Someone bring this wimpy kid to one of the other instructors to unlock the combination.”

Embarrassed, two of your comrades help him stand up and guide him with comforting words leaving you and the rest of the class in a shocked silence, none of you expected to get shot by an instructor during the trial’s travel.

You gulp, what a way to start! You didn’t need that with your current stress level, you just clench your hands harder on your weapon.

“Anyone else as a question?” He asks, opening his arms wide.

Silently, Thrawn raises his hand and waits patiently to be given the right to speak, at this sight some student hesitantly imitates him raising their arms. The instructor takes all the questions, ostensibly keeping Thrawn for last.

“What is it, blueface?”

“What is it about the chips you have pegged in our nape?” He asks calmly, visibly not bothered.

You frown your eyebrow and put your hand to the back of your neck, here you can feel a little rectangular object shot into your skin.

“Well observed blueface! It’s the control ship for the combination; it will lock it if aimed and you’ll blackout instantly, careful cause it’s fragile. We can activate it by distance so don’t try anything smart or break the rules. Anything else?”

Nobody moves.

“Good. We will arrive shortly!”

_____________________________________________________

“Team k go! Go! Go! Go!”

You blink, blinded by the sun as the footbridge opens to let you go. The sound of motors and wind is deafening, and the scent suffocates you for an instant. For an hour the corvette was parachuting students to their assigned starting point and now it’s your team's turn. You adjust your package on your back and start running toward the edge of the footbridge, you jump and land heavily on your feets in what appears to be a jungle, you feel it spread through your legs. You hear your teammates lend next to you with more or less facility. You raise your eyes to the sky and observe the corvette disappearing towards the next landing point. The trial officially began for you.

“So here we go! What do we do now?” Cosblo asks.

You concentrate but don’t seem to hear any sarcasm in his voice.

“For starters we should find shadows then inspect our respective packages.” Thrawn points.

You didn’t pick it up sooner but now that the wind doesn’t scream in your ear anymore you notice the temperature is hot and moist, water will be a problem if the weather doesn’t change. You feel sweat already building up and wipe your forehead with your hand. You follow them under a large unknown tree and remove your bag to examine it; you search and take out what’s usually not present in a standardized package.

“We have the data cylinder, medpacs, a datapad, food ration for 3 days, flashlights, climbing gears, a disassembled sniper rifle, and … knives?” Eli enumerates.

He takes one of these weird black handles and tinkers with it. Suddenly a red shiny triangle shaped blade shot out with a gasp from his part.

“A laser knife… Not to play with.” He says, putting it back. “That’s what we got among other things.”

“Who’s gonna keep the cylinder?” You ask.

Nobody’s really enthusiastic about that, having the cylinder is practically a target on the back.

“If everyone agrees, I will take it.” Thrawn says.

You shrug. Why not? It’s surely your best shot; he’s the most experienced of all of you.

“I agree.” You conclude.

“I’ve nothing against that.” Eli concurs.

Cosblo, on the other hand, stays silent, eyes focused on Thrawn with an indecipherable expression.

“Cadet Cosblo? I want the opinion of everyone.”Thrawn tries.

Cosblo pouts but concede.

“Sure. Take it.”

You exhale a breath you didn’t notice you were holding, you thought he would have been more difficult than that.

Holding his chin Thrawn examines the datapad in silence before putting it down and assessing the situation.

“First thing we should determine where we are located, then we could start to instigate a plan for the rest of the day.” He rises up and examines the tree. “Cadet (y/n), if you get on my shoulders, could you climb up that tree?”

You stop everything to look at the enormous tree with an incredulous look.

“Huh, can’t Eli do it? I’m sure he’s lighter than me.” You try.

“Doubt it. Plus the closer I am to the ground the merrier I am.” Eli counters.

You look once again to the tree and your eyes cross Thrawn’s and you see something akin to impatience growing in them.

“Alright, I’ll do it…” You wrinkle your nose; you don’t like that.

Thrawn kneels against the tree, and you climb atop, careful not to hurt him. You’re suddenly very conscious of your weight and try to keep it balanced between your two legs.

“Is it okay? I’m not too heavy?” You ask with a low voice, embarrassed.

“Focus on your grips.” He answers with a commanding tone.

You raise your head, tiptoes, and seize a branch to lift yourself.

“J.C. wait!” You frown at Cosblo shouting. “Take that to record what you see.” And like that, throws the datapad in the air. You catch it just in time and continue your ascension with a single hand.

Attaining the top of the tree, you start looking around and record the best you can without losing your balance. In the distance you could see metallic arches that delimited the area of the trial you speculate, here and there you could see smoke and the corvette still dropping students but more importantly in what seems like the middle of the area was a giant structure, between a network of caves and a building, and between you and this structure a forest, cliffs and rivers and no straight way. You sigh in front of the immense task ahead of you and the enormous passage in front of you, you put down the datapad and take a moment to appreciate the spectacle in front of you.

“Is everything okay up there?” You hear Eli shout.

“Yes! I’m coming down!”

You drop the datapad for Eli to catch and start going down.

“Someone catches me!” You warn once you get to the last branches.

You release the branch and let you fall, you feel like flying for a second when a couple of strong arms circle your waist and catch you mid-air. Thrawn then let you down delicately without a word. You nod at him thankfully, silencing your singing heart and join the rest of the group to analyze what you saw. The group watches the record in religious silence, before Thrawn takes the floor.

“This structure must be the point of rendez-vous for once we gathered the data.”

“What makes you say that?” Cosblo asks.

“This trial would need a huge center of control to function and unless they built it underground it is the only place large enough to contain it.”

“Before all that we will need to cross different swamp and cliffs and find the team we were assigned. This won’t be easy…” Recalls Eli.

“How do we know which team we will need to find in the first place?” You inquire.

“It is the B team” Thrawn points on the screen.

You gasp as the sound of riffles bangs in the air suddenly. A group of birds flies away from the trees far away ahead of you.

“It looks like two teams already found each other.” Thrawn notes monotonously. “We should go, we are too exposed here.”

You all gather your stuff and start to walk through the jungle in silence. You don’t like that you’re heading towards the shots, but you don’t verbalize it, on the other hand you keep turning your head behind you to keep a close eye on Cosblo. You still didn’t digest the fact that he’s in your team, and his relationship with each of the members is mediocre at best. He, on the other hand, clearly didn’t digest what happened at the school cantina, and you can’t say if he intends to act on it, you’d rather not be taken by surprise.

You walk in single file for the rest of the day until you reach a flat zone covered by trees, you collectively decide to camp here for the night and gather energy for the next few days. You raise the tents and go gather wood for the fire, as you come back under the moon you see Thrawn sitting sharpening a branch of his own.

“What are you doing?” You ask, putting down your wood to nourish the fire. You sit in front of him. He answers without raising his eyes from his hands.

“I’m fashioning a harpoon cadet. Those rations won’t last until the end of the trial; we will need to fend for ourselves.”

You didn’t add anything else knowing that he is right; you just sat and looked at him carving the wood, weighing up the shaft and trying some moves. The combination let you guess his musculature, so you didn’t complain, appreciating the spectacle in front of you. He reminds you of the antique athletes of your world that you’ve seen countless times in statues and pottery. You mind-absently eat, enthralled by what you see.

You hear Eli and Cosblo coming back behind you.

“You could have waited for us to come back to eat (y/n), where are your manners?” Eli berates you with a friendly push of the shoulder.

“You were taking too much time and I didn’t want to let Lieutenant Thrawn all alone like that, who knows what could have happened.” You laugh.

“The comeback of J.C the heroine…” Cosblo snarls.

You frown your eyebrows. It goes immediately under your skin.

“What’s up with you?!”

“Nothing, why?” He responds with a honeyed voice.

You open your mouth to retort but Thrawn beats you to it.

“We do not know where the other teams are, keep your volume down.”

You’re cut down in your movement but don’t add anything, nobody says anything and you all eat in a weird silence where everyone seems uncomfortable except Thrawn who is imperturbable. Irritated, you finish your meal and go straight to bed without a word for your teammates. You curl yourself into your sleeping bag, a hand on your rifle, and try to sleep.

You wake up in a snap, your weapon pulled out of your duvet towards the head of the mass present in your tent, looming silently over you, but it manages to catch the cannon of your rifle.

“Good reflex.” Says a low familiar voice.

You blink to see the eyes of Thrawn glowing at you with silent praises. You raise up, rubbing your eyes, the dark around you indicating you it’s not yet morning.

“Thrawn? Maker what is wrong with you? I’ve almost had a heart attack…”

“My apologies. It is your turn to watch, Eli will take his turn after you.”

You rub your temples, nodding your head with a grumble.

“I also wanted to talk to you about Cosblo…”

You raise back up your head, did he notice something? Did Cosblo attempt anything?

“I know your relationship is shaky, but he is a member of this team and I expect everyone to work as such. I wish your misdemeanor from earlier does not happen again. It is a luxury we can not afford at this time.”

You open your mouth to protest, but he cuts you by raising his hands.

“I know you were not at the root of the problem, I have already talked about it with him. I am asking you to be a reasonable person. Can I count on you?” He asks, his flamboyant eyes on you.

You clench your teeth, you can not promise anything.

“Yes…”

“Good. So I will wish you a good shift for the rest of the night.”

He stands up to get out and the sight of him departing sparks of panic in your heart.

“Wait, Sir!”

He stops in his marks and turns back to you with a curious gaze. You didn’t think this through, a lot of things jostle inside your head, a lot of things you would like to say to him, about Cosblo and other matters, but nothing comes out.

“Yes?” He asks with a soft voice.

“Nothing, goodnight sire…”

He nods his head.

“Goodnight cadet.”

You let a big sigh escape you after he leaves, you shake your head to energize you for your shift, it’s gonna be long if hopefully nothing happens. You stretch to crack your spine and leave out your tent with your rifle.

The night temperature is more clement than during the day and a gentle breeze is caressing your face’s skin, the other moons are full and high in the sky resulting in a vision almost as clear as day. You patrol across your camp in silence focusing on your surroundings, listening to any suspicious sounds but you could only hear grasshoppers singing in the wind and the sound of a small stream nearby. You tap the center of the fire with the tip of your foot to ensure the ashes are extinguished and circle aimlessly. You hear animals several times and this prospect sends shivers down your spine, you would rather stand against a predator with a real rifle than these laser toys, you retract your path to take up the lance Thrawn was carving earlier to reassure you.

As nothing happened you’re reduced to doing push-ups to pass time, when loud serial clacks strike in the silence of the night, you immediately jump on your feet, aiming in this general direction where cries could now be heard. You stand immobile debating if you should wake up your team before realizing it is too far away to be any kind of menace for the moment. Curious, as you climb up a nearby hill and try to localize the incident, you quickly notice the flash of colors distinctive of laser weapons approximately 10 miles ahead of you, it seems like chaos with people shouting in every direction. You keep watching, hypnotized by the lightning effects you don’t immediately feel that something is buzzing in your pocket. Surprised you reach for it and take out your comlink vibrating like you’re receiving a transmission. Weird, you thought most of the frequencies greater than 16 miles were cut off for the trial? You open it but only hear static. You try meddling with it but nothing comes of it. Whoever was trying to reach you would need to retry later.

You come back to the camp and wake up Eli to take his shift, he more or less reacts the same way you did with Thrawn but takes his turn with more enthusiasm than you.

You gratefully go back to your sleeping bag and sleep without dreams.

You wake up with the sun and get out of your tent still wrapped up in your duvet, blink several times to focus your vision and notice Thrawn laying on a rock with the now assembled sniper rifle. With eyes still full of sleep you join him and lay beside him putting the duvet on both of you, he doesn’t even move his face aside the gun sights.

“Good morning cadet.”

“Good morning Sir, what do we have this morning?”

“We have a team down by the river.”

He hands you the gun and you put your eyes on the sights. Through it you could see the adverse team enjoying its breakfast. You observe as they go around their tents eating and stretching their muscles, a silly idea crosses your mind as you wonder if you could shoot them at this distance.

“We could make a detour to avoid them.” He announces.

You decide that yes, you could shoot them at this distance without too much difficulty, you're almost tempted as your finger grazes the trigger, but you hold yourself back.

“I take it you don’t want to start a confrontation?”

“Not at this point at least, it is unnecessary.”

“Where are we heading toward anyway?” You ask.

He takes out the datapad and opens a map of the zone.

“We are here.” He points on the screen “I calculated team B must have been dropped here, and counting on the fact that every team must head toward the giant structure at some point, I intend to find them in this zone. But we will need to be quick.”

You give him back the rifle and he stands up.

“We should get ahead while they're occupied.” And he goes.

You take a last look at the river where your adversaries are and you get up too to join him and start packing your stuff. It is early in the morning but the heat is already rising and once all your packages are done you would trade anything for a dry t-shirt.

Eli is not thrilled at the idea of walking a hike without eating something before, in fact nobody is but Thrawn presses the group to hurry up and soon enough you’re back on the road. Alternating between jogging and running you try to cover the most distance possible with the least amount of break. It’s tiring and the heat and the weight of your packs doesn’t help.

It is past noon when Cosblo had enough.

“Stop! I can’t go further, I need a break…”

He stops and drops his bag on the ground right then and there.

“Come on Cadet! The Academy taught you to continue past the pain, did it not?” Thrawn asks, retracing his steps.

Cosblo takes a breath.

“They did! They also taught me that intense physical effort without nourishment is an unnecessary hazard.” He retorts, dropping to his knees with a relieved sigh.

“I will concur with him on this one.” Eli confessed. You nod in approvement.

Thrawn doesn't respond, looking at you and Eli then takes a look all around you.

“15 minute break, then we will go back.”

Oh thank the Maker! You think. You drop your bag and go towards the river to apply water on your neck and head. Finally a break! You resist the idea of throwing yourself in the river altogether, as delicious as it sounds it’s a guarantee for a cold. Thrawn comes next to you, soaking a piece of cloth to cool down his head. You notice him sweating profusely and panting but remains stoic.

“Everything good, sir?”

“I am okay, cadet.” He simply answers.

You remember he comes from an ice planet, these temperatures must really take a toll on him but he doesn’t complain or slow the pace, there is a real gap between your two self-discipline. Suddenly you feel shameful for demanding a break, you feel weak.

Once you’ve swallowed your ration it is already time to set off again. You cross the river and continue further north through the dense and exotic vegetation. You didn’t have time to admire it but the flora is very rich with translucent leaves and shiny veins, red and purple bushes and prismatic plants that color your path, between creepers and tall grasses it is difficult to advance without hacking through them. It’s with this slowed pace that suddenly you’re stopped in your tracks hearing shouts and rifles right in front of you. The group stops like one man and you take refuge in the thickets, weapons drawn.

You rose ever so slightly to observe what is happening and sure enough, two teams are facing each other although it is impossible to identify which one at this distance. You frown, trying to focus on what's ahead, it looks like one team has the upper hand, searching the packages with the opposite team on their knees and their hands on the back of their neck. One of them is lying still headfirst in the dirt with all its combination glowing red, this one is definitively down! You hold your breath as someone brandishes the data cylinder and summons the rest of its group.

“This is where it gets interesting.” Thrawn comments with a low voice.

They analyze it, it takes a minute and you hear a new shout of exasperation this time. Wrong pick. It is not the team they searched for. Clearly they are not pleased and one of them kicks one of the bags to the ground. At the moment you thought they would allow the other group to go, they take out their knife and stab the cylinder on several occasions, destroying it for good. You gawk at this sight. The defeated team tries to protest but are threatened with the rifles to stay in place.

“It’s over for them…” Mutters Eli.

“But are they allowed to do that?” Cosblo choke on his own words

“Since the examiners don’t activate their attire, we can deduce it is authorized.” Thrawn concludes.

“But that’s terrible!” You protest.

With this rule you will have to fear for your cylinder and team’s B at each and every encounter. It is but a matter of time before they cross paths with another team and risk losing the data. The stakes are suddenly way higher than what you have anticipated.

“I supposed it was an option this morning, this is why I did not want to confront the other team.” Thrawn explains, his eyes darted on the scene in front of him.

Angry, the winners pack their bags and shoot the losers for good measures, then head west.

“No need to stay any longer, a corvette will come collect them soon.” Thrawn parts away without looking back.

Crouching you follow your teammates until you're far enough to run again, with a new spike of adrenaline with those news. It severely alters the ways of the trial, it is much more challenging than anticipated. You can hear the shuttle coming for the team you left behind.

You travel again for two or three hours until you stumble around a lake of pure water. You collectively decide to stay here for the night and set up the camp. Once everything is set the only thing on your mind is to take a dip in this magnificent water. You take advantage that they’re all three occupied and you head towards the lake, unzipping your combination to your underwear and entering the water, it is deliciously cool and fresh, you immerse yourself totally, getting rid of all this sweat and filth. What a thrill. You swim slowly, looking at the pebbles and the trouts scattering away from you.

You’re observing a shell when two hands seize your waist, lift you and throw you away without a warning. You cough, water in your lungs, to Eli who’s folded in half laughing.

“You need to be more on your guard (y/n)! You won’t make it with a light head like that!”

“I will show you a light head!” You respond, throwing yourself at him to drown him.

You jostle yourself for a moment until you hear someone cry.

“Clear!”

And an enormous splash of water splatters you and Eli, Cosblo emerges with a big smile like a tyke.

“You almost knocked us out!” You accuse, laughing.

“Almost, not quite.”

“Where is Thrawn?” Eli asks.

“He’s finishing his patrol of the perimeter, I didn’t find anything on my own so we are safe here for now.” Cosblo responds.

You hope he will join you. You refuse to admit it to yourself but you would like to see how it is under his shirt. He must be carved from marble you like to imagine, he appears so athletic he doesn’t take too much to guess how it must be. You blush at this thought, it is neither the time nor the place. You immerse yourself once more to chill down your burning body and mind, you gulp to humidify your mouth dried at those indecent thoughts.

As you emerge once again you spot Thrawn on the rock beside the lake, his back to you. As he turns his head towards you, you wave at him.

“Come down with us!” Cosblo shouts, mincing his words as always.

You look at him surprised, you didn’t expect him to be this… Cordial.

“Thank you cadet, but I must decline the offer.”

“Oh come on! Have some team spirit!”

Thrawn simply shakes his head.

“No, I will continue my inspection of the surroundings. I will come back to you if I find anything.” And like that disappear behind the rocks.

“What’s up with him?” Cosblo asks.

“Maybe he doesn't want to enjoy a bath with the younglings.” Eli answers, letting himself get carried away by the water.

“He’s a big shy, yes! Under that stoic demeanor he’s a scared child!” Cosblo scowls.

You don’t say a thing, fixing pensively where he was standing one minute earlier. You would lie if you said you were not a bit disappointed. Too bad, you will feast your eyes another time.

Twenty minutes later you get out the water to dry by the fire, you are not exactly sure how but Cosblo managed to catch fish and start roasting them. The air is surprisingly light tonight, you suppose some of the tension and stress melted away in the water, and you intend to enjoy it. You redress yourself and wait for your fish to be ready; this is the moment Thrawn chooses to reappear. He sat down with you and partook in the discussion with the rest of the group but you feel an uneasy sentiment emanate from him, but you can’t put your finger on it so you don’t pry on him.

Later that night Eli comes waking you up for your shift, and you’re back to doing push ups and burpees cause you’re bored and nothing’s happening until you hear rustling in the bushes near you. Without letting the fear get to you, you seize your rifle and the spear and crouch towards the sound, ready to wake up your squad if need be. But you first wanted to know what you were up to.

You slowly approach as silently as possible, you pass the bushes down the lake a little far ahead, you continue until a mass passes in front of you. You hold back a scream of surprise as you curl up even more. You crawl into the dirt to a nice hiding spot and observe.

In front of you, illuminated by the golden fireflies, stands the shadow identifiable by its flamboyant red eyes. Thrawn is washing his hair under the cascade unaware of your presence, the water glistening under the silvery moons on his skin, sparkling like diamonds, enhancing the definition of its carved muscles. You blink at this sight, you expected enemies and you're graced with this sublime scene straight up of a fairy tail albeit a lecherous one.

You watch him bathe unknowingly, blood rushing to your cheeks. Your heartbeat accelerates as your eyes open larger to take the measure of the picture. You gulp as you follow his hands slowly caressing his body, you admire every flexion of the muscles and a light moan escapes you. He takes his time, appreciates the sensation of the water on his body, and you're on the verge of combusting, your core neglected by your studies awakens of a long dormancy, tingles and contracts on the void, protesting to have been ignored for so long and demanding attention now. Given the situation you refuse to give up to your lowest instinct and refrain from acting on it but you find yourself unable to detach your gaze from him, you dare not to move, worrying that he may spot you in the undergrowth.

Taking a deep breath you detail him from head to toes, his luscious hair, his thick neck on his broad shoulders extended by strong arms and end with mighty hands.

Oh those hands.

Those soft hands. You’ve felt them in yours but now you want them all over your body, sneaking their way up every cranny of your flesh grabbing and kneading your mounds while he kisses you with his delectable lips, biting and licking yours.

You put one hand over your pulsating knot hoping it would ease its stretching and yearning. To no avail. You breathe hard, hot and bothered, your gaze keeps traveling on his form, wide and kissable chest, his gropable waist and traceable abdominals.

It’s only now that it dawns on you that he is actually naked and not in his underwear as you first thought.

You take one guilty look.

But the shadows make it invisible as to taunt you.

You pants and gulp, your mouth is drier than the desert and you feel thirst growing inside you as the same time your core pulses with forces.

It takes you a superhuman effort to detach yourself from this scene and to go back to the camp.

This trial is a roller coaster of emotions, and it gets you on your nerves.

A little panicked you try to get your mind off of things but your sex refuses to be ignored in such a way. Without thinking about it you enter the tent of Eli, in hopes he could be of some help.

He raises his head with eyes full of sleep.

“(y/n)? Is there a problem?” He yawns.

“No, I… I just wanted some company…” You lay beside him, using your hands as a pillow.

“You look like you just saw an apparition.”

“Maybe I did…”

You gulp, trying to relax but you're tense like a bow string.

“So? What brings you here?” He asks with sweetness in the voice.

“I was just thinking about the trial and this situation as a whole and can’t sleep.” You lie, or not totally, those questions plagues your mind from the beginning.

“You sure it’s not Cosblo snoring that keeps you awake?”

You laugh slightly.

“No but having to sleep next to him might.”

“You don’t trust him.” He murmurs

You shake your head.

“I don’t know. I’ve rarely seen his good side, he seemed genuine tonight but….”

He rolls on his back, his hands under his head, contemplating the roof of his tent.

“I’ve chosen to trust the guy, we’re in this together and I trust he’s intelligent enough to act like it.”

You don’t respond, your instinct tells you to be on your toes around him, but maybe Eli’s right? Maybe you could give him a chance?

“Well, to answer your former worries, hopefully if Thrawn gets better he may guide us through this exam successfully. We can rely on his experience and our strengths, don’t worry.”

“You think he was strange this evening too?” You ask, relieved your mind was not playing tricks on you.

He stays silent as he looks into your eyes like he’s searching for his words.

“I think… He misses his people.”

It’s your turn to be silent. You explore this idea a second.

“Does he?”

“I think the moment at the lake threw him back in time, when he was with his friends and he will never admit it but I think it’s one of the things that can get to him.”

“But he could have that! He could have all that here with us if he would let his guard down!” You protest.

Eli shakes his head.

“Can you blame him? Being exiled and thrown into an unknown and hostile system must not encourage him to open up.”

You frown, you clearly see the logic but are displeased by the results.

“It’s not only that, it’s more profound than that…” You whisper through your teeth.

“Maybe… What we can do is to be there for him, so he knows he can rely on us.”

You pout, your mind in bulk.

“Sleep here tonight, your ideas will be clearer by morning.” He proposes.

You nod silently, getting up to wake Cosblo and coming back rapidly to the security and the intimacy of this small piece of hessian.

You sleep soundly, again without dreams to disturb your rest. You don’t even feel your comlink vibrating once again.

@bluechiss, @exoplorationn

[propelindustries100]

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Crushing and screening is an industry where the toughest of machines also are stress tested.To make sure our customers get the very best from their crushing equipment, we offer a fully integrated customer care programme that covers spare parts, wear parts, servicing and maintenance, supported by a dedicated customer service team.

We understand that our customers have different requirements. So we have different service options, which can be chosen according to each customer's need. All our machines come with a replacement parts schedule, to help you identify your parts and service requirements in a preventive manner.

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[own-sbm-machine]

A jaw crusher is a type of primary crusher used in mines and ore processing plants. It works by using compressive force to break down materials, such as rocks, into smaller pieces.

[jaw-stone-crusher]

jaw crusher

[spacedocmom]

Doctor Beverly Crusher @SpaceDocMom Space is cold. Put a sweater on. Also remember to take your medications and hydrate. Also unclench your jaw and don't forget to put lotion on that dry patch before it itches you all night tonight. emojis: black heart, blue heart, masked, spoon, pill, water cup, lotion bottle 3:09 PM · May 14, 2024

[mceproductions]

MCE The Jaw Droppers 2023 #2: The Enterprise D Returns to the fold.

Along with the 3rd season of Picard being so great in getting the crew of the enterprise D back together for a final journey. There was one player nobody saw coming.

In the wake of a return of an old enemy, Picard and company were brought back to a piece of their past being unexpectedly restored after they had lost it long ago.

What magic happens when Geordi brings the crew together on the rebuilt bridge is nothing short of stunning.

Even the welcome voice of Majel Barrett as the Starfleet computer was a very welcome touch.

We knew the reunion was going to happen from the start. Nobody expected the original ship would come back in the play.

And jaws were dropped.

[vibratingskull]

Dance Lesson

Part1, 2

Thrawxf!reader

Between dancing, stealing uniforms and your heart, your head gets fuzzy.

“I was caught up tutoring Shah-tezh on basic theory. I didn't have time to find a date for the Gala!."

"Fair enough. Hopefully it was worth it." Karyn replies.

You shrug your shoulders, you don't care at the moment, you are too busy laying on the grass enjoying the sun. With your limbs spread like a starfish you let the pleasant warmth spread on your skin while a soft wind keeps blowing a lock of hair through your face. You don't mind, at this instant you were really at peace.

"Do you have anyone in mind? Cosblo maybe?" She grins at you.

You burst out laughing together, hugging your ribs. You try your best to speak coherently.

"I can see his face! He would be so disgusted!"

Karyn joins you laying on the grass, her body shaked by her laughter. You both stay like that, under the sun's rays, calming down slowly and enjoying the simple company.

"So, do you have someone in mind or not?" She asks quietly after a moment of silence.

"No, I didn’t actually think that much about it. I’ll just pop up at the Gala alone and run off with their best bottles, what do you think?"

"Sounds good, but if Deenlark caught you, you would be in big trouble!"

"Blast Deenlark! I will have already graduated by then anyway, he won't be able to do much."

You let a moment pass, appreciating the song of a bird near you. It is a gentle melody but one of its last. Birds don't live long on Coruscant. They are constantly imported to the city planet to please the wealthy, but can’t survive in the urban environment.

"And you?" You ask.

"Hey, I still have two years before this Ball, don't pressure me with that now!" She responds playfully.

"Come on. Don't you have any targets? Nobody you wish you could ask in secret?"

She looks at you from the corner of her eyes before capitulating.

"Alright, alright. I am thinking about asking Tiabri's out."

You search in your memory Tiabri's face, you are not the best when it comes to remembering people.

"Tiabri, Tiabri, Tiabri… Long curly black hair and green eyes? The one with a silvery tattoo?"

"Yes, that's her." She answers lazily, getting more and more sleepy under the sun. It doesn't stop you from harassing her with questions.

"When will you ask? How?"

"First off, I can hear your smile with my eyes closed, stop it. And second, I don't know. I’ll see when the moment comes."

"Okay, but don't take too long. You can’t be the only one with your eyes on her"

"Says the one without a date?"

You nudge her.

"Oh shut up, you."

"Hey, J.C! Karyn!"

Shielding your eyes with your hand, you turn toward the voice and see Eli meeting you with a smile, making the grass crack under his feet.

"What are you both doing here?"

"Enjoying the sun, come sit."

Eli lets himself down to the ground beside you and sighs with contentment.

"Why have you never told me about this spot? It must be the greatest thing in this Academy."

"Because we didn’t want you here, but now that you've found it we’re screwed." You playfully whisper.

"(Y/n), language." Karyn berates you.

"Now we are exposed?"

"Better. Where is the other guy? Thram?”

“Thra-wn.” Eli corrects. ”He’s talking with Deenlark”

“He’s talking or he’s talking?”

“He’s arguing with Deenlark.”

“Oh for Maker’s sake…”

“Where did you come from?" Ask Karyn.

"I just came back from the race track, the team accepted me as a substitute after my essays."

"See? I told you they would say yes,Jakeeb is a fair guy, he wouldn’t say no to someone who wanted to join the team.”

“In fact I will mostly help as a technician but he said I could participate in the Senior Race at the end of the year.”

It’s the final race of the season and the one concluding the curriculum of the seniors students just before the final exam of simulation.

“And the ball to finish the year.” you added.

“The what?”

“The ball!” you respond in unison.

He opens his eyes and turns towards you with an incredulous expression.

“Beg you pardon?”

__________________________________

“One, two, three... One, two, three... One, tw- Wrong foot!” You drop Thrawn’s hand and cut the music “Let’s take a break.”

You go over your towel and rub the sweat off your face while the chiss with a frustrated expression go to his bottle, next to him Eli lays against the wall with a defeated look on his face. Clearly neither him nor Thrawn are pleased to be here.

“Eli, you’re next.”

“Okay, but can you tell us again why we have to sweat?”

“The Gala is in less than three months.”

“Isn’t it just a stupid dance?”

“I wish it was. It would be easier, but I’m not working your butt off for just some dance.” You take your bottle and go sit with them. “It’s the Academy Ball, it’s trickier than that.”

“We would show more enthusiasm if we knew what it entails,” argues Thrawn.

You take a sip looking at them, wondering how to put it simply. You’re not informed about everything either.

“To be brief, did you notice how many of the students are from the elite? It’s the new way the Gotha have to introduce its childs to the high Society.”

“Didn’t the Empire wipe them off to instate a new social order?” Thawn wonders, surprised.

“Well it did, but some old, old families of the Republic worked with the Chancelier Palpatine to keep their privileges when he would be emperor. Now the upstarts and the new bourgeoisie had joined them and adopted the old ways of the former Nobility. So they use the ball as a means to introduce their prized children as adults to the Society.”

“And put them in contact with the rest of the political and military scene, I see,” completes Thrawn.

“Of course, as aliens and outer-rim dwellers we don’t have to live up to those high expectations but we still need to honor and not embarrass the military corps in front of the wealthy. So you really need to catch up with those dance moves!”

“Why isn't there any rehearsal with the class?” Eli grumbles.

“We had them at the start of the year, with the taking of measurements of uniforms”

“There is specific uniforms?”

“Of course, they don’t want to present their future new officers with some cheap tuxedos. They’re unique costumes. All the students that could afford it got one. I would have gotten one for myself if Karyn hadn’t already promised me to lend me a dress from her family.”

“Your friendship is strong,” notes Thrawn.

“I stood up for her in front of a stubborn professor when she arrived two years ago.”

“I see, so she bears a sentiment of gratitude towards you since then.”

“Don’t know, she had plenty of occasions to repay me. We just connect well.”

“And what about the students that cannot afford a tailored costume?”

You put your hands behind you and roll your head to ease the muscles of your back.

“Not everyone takes them back so we take old ones that we touch-up, you should ask for one at the stewardship.”

“No.” Thrawn responds, holding his chin. “This will not be an option.”

“Why not?” Eli queries doubtfully.

“I am afraid this opportunity closed itself with my last argument with Deenlark not long ago. He swore he would try his best to get in my way to the navy command chain.”

Eli looks at him mortified, Thrawn has no equal when it comes to running into problems but it seems he surpassed himself this time.

“What did you do?” You ask.

“I merely pointed out alternative and more effective methods of education.”

“Did you?”

Sometimes you wonder if Deenlark wouldn't outright refuse Thrawn to graduate to make him pay for his insolence. He often flirts with the line.

“I bet none of you have the money for a private tailor, so that leaves you with…”

“Robbing one.” Thrawn completes.

You choke on your water.

“Hey, calm down! Isn’t there a solution less… radical?” Eli intervenes.

“You could borrow them,” you propose.

“Unfortunately, we are not popular enough students for that.”

“We could rent them?” Eli adds.

“As J.C said, they are unique costumes. No store would have them.”

“Maybe Karyn could lend us a costume?” Eli insists.

“We would run into the same problem, moreover she agreed to lend a dress to (y/n) who is a good friend of hers, none of us can say the same.”

Eli frowns, annoyed.

“You could just… not go?” you suggest.

“That is out of question for myself. This is evidently an important ritual for the navy. I cannot ignoreit. Moreover, it will get me in contact with the chain of commands as a whole, I can not let such an opportunity pass.”

His arguments are sound, but still… You both turn your head towards Eli.

“I want to go too.” He responds, pressed.

“Then it’s settled, we should soon think about a plan.”

“Hey! Don’t bring me into this!”

“As you wish” Thrawn speaks camly. “But with or without you we will find a way.”

You gave a long groan. You were going to regret this.

_______________________________________________________

“What do you mean Eli won’t come?” You ask.

It is still early in the evening and you just ended your daily session of Shah-tezh and revisions with Thrawn.

“He has practice with the team for the Senior race.” Thrawn answers unwavering, replacing the pawns in the box.

“Hmpf.”

You sulk during your walk to your room. You’re not worried for Eli, his dancing skills are good. He can afford to skip a few sessions, but it is not the same for Thrawn and you're worried about the idea of being alone with him. Who knows what lies behind those incandescent eyes.

You inhale and get ready for what comes next.

“Wrong foot again.” You lightly shake your head. “I don’t understand, you master it when you are without a partner but you lose it when we dance together…”

Thrawn steps back at a respectful distance.

“Maybe you should let me lead for once.”

“ I will when you know how to put one foot after the other, until then you lead nothing! Let’s try it again without music.”

You get back in position, providing enough distance so he can clearly see your feet.

“Let’s try it slow, everything starts with your left foot…”

You start once again, swiping across the floor at the measure of you counting.

“One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight. One, two…”

It’s already been a month since you started teaching them. It has been an adventure if only for finding an empty room everyday, muscle soreness and all the time they stepped on your foot. With so little time you’re only teaching them the three most popular dances for those parties.. Eli was doing well enough, you had started helping him develop freestyle. Thrawn, however, was another entity. He’s doing remarkably in the solo exercises, but completely spoils it with a partner; too fast, too slow, off beat, zero synchronization. If only he could just follow the music you could follow him in return.

“One, two,thre- Ouch…”

You hold his shoulder while you prance to keep your balance and he holds your arm for support.

“I am truly sorry,” he says.

“I don’t doubt it, I just wished it didn’t happen as much,” you laugh it out. “I feel like you're not with me on this, like you're absolutely trying to take the lead.”

“I am trying my best but it has proven harder than expected.”

You put your foot back on the ground and think, what could prevent him from improving?

You won't say you fully understand him. His mind works in a different capacity than most anyone you'd ever met. He couldn't even look at a painting without finding a way to bring the art of war into it. Perhaps that was the solution.

“I think… You see your partner as an adversary rather than an ally.”

He raises an eyebrow.

“This is not combat, miss (y/l/n).”

“That’s exactly my point, you expect resistance where there is not. You should relax, go with the flow! Stop being so stern and serious all the time… I know!”

You put the music back on dropping the ballroom style for a more upbeat and joyous style and slide the volume up. You start prancing, swinging on site and encouraging him to do the same.

“Come on! Dance! Have some fun!” You dance and skip “It will unknot your muscles, you’re always so stiff!”

His demeanor doesn’t change but a flash passes through his eyes like you screamed profanity at him, something akin to a horrified expression twists his face for less than a second before getting back to it’s usual imperturbable look as you rotate around him in rhythm.

You take his hands and start swinging them.

“Come on, come on!”

Understanding he wouldn’t escape this, he starts shifting his weight on his feets reluctantly. You start freestyling, shaking your head with all your might to shake off all your stress and nerves from the last month, the exams, the ball, the simulation test, everything that came and is to come, throwing everything away.

At the corner of your eyes you see him expanding and caressing his limbs, more into a choreographed stretch than a real dance, but it will do.

You continue like this for five more minutes before switching back to the ballroom music.

“Let’s try this again! And dance with me this time, not against. ”

You hold your hands and you already notice a difference in the way he carries himself. You engage the first steps and he follows with ease like something just switched in his unconscious mind.

"Very good!"

You keep up the same dance until the end. There were still some errors and resistance on his part but the progress was amazing. These lessons will be less tedious from now on.

“Much better! Let’s take a break.” You turn down the sound and sit to do some stretches.

“Did you make up your mind?” Thawn asks.

“About what?”

“About helping us with the costume. The date is rapidly approaching.”

You hum out a sigh. “I’m not sure. This is not really my problem, no offense.”

He looks at you in silence with a cryptic expression

“I see, a pity.”

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“No nothing, what do you mean by “a pity”? You never make commentaries without some idea in mind, what are you thinking about?”

“I was just thinking how displeased you would be if your secret were spreaded.” _______________________________________________________________

I’m an idiot, you thought, leaning behind a wall to ensure nobody's there and Thrawn behind you to have your back.

You regret accepting to help and you regret this date was chosen. Although it is the best date possible, the Senior Race is monopolizing all the Academy and both teachers and students are at the circuit to support the team, it also means Eli won’t be there to help.

You feel uneasy, you didn’t talk much to Thrawn since you tried to kiss him the other day and you’re not sure how to act. He doesn’t seem to know about it and is acting like always, but your lips and cheeks burn at that single thought.

You press yourself against the wall when a loud group of students pass nearby. The storehouse is down the corridor at your left, and the connection point in front of you, you will need to traverse the junction when the cameras won’t look to the next blindspot.

“You know how to enter, miss (y/n)?” He demands with a low voice.

"That's why you asked for my help., And cut it out with the miss, you're stressing me out."

You turn your head towards the camera.

“Go!” You check left and right and cross the intersection “Stop!”

Hiding from the cam behind Thrawn you open your bag and take out a little console and start searching for the round plug.

“What is this?” He checks on you over his shoulder.

“This, my dear, is a technological marvel that you won’t find anywhere else.” You found it and plugged it right away. “It will take some seconds to connect.”

The screen lights up and you start playing with the buttons, searching for the correct command.

“C’mon, c’mon… Ha!” You click and select the correct files. “I’m hijacking the stream of the camera. There! We won’t appear on the tape anymore.”

He turns himself and kneels next to you to observe.

“It shouldn’t take too long from now on.” Series of numbers appears on the screen and your little machine starts searching.

“So what is it exactly?”

“At first it was sold to technicians to manage stocks, but some smart ones quickly found out how to overwrite the primary code and transform this little toy into a global master key. It works on everything because the code is the most simple one you can find, without any frills. After that the Republic destroyed them for public safety reasons.”

“Not all of them, I see.”

“Most of them.” You laugh. “My grandparents once robbed a bank with one of those!”

He raises an eyebrow.

“Or so I’ve been told.” You clear your throat. “There won’t be any cams inside but the droids can record through their eyes.”

“You sure seem to know a lot about the infrastructure, J.C.”

“No, not really.”

He looks at you with glaring eyes.

“Okay, I’ve done it once. But I only took chocolate bars for Karyn’s birthday.”

“It explains a lot.”

You can’t say if his tone is neutral or judgmental.

“It’s open.” You close your bag and stand up on your feet.

You check left and right once again and go down the corridor to see the storehouse door wide open, you gallop to it and close it behind Thrawn. Glaring across the room you both hide behind a metal box left here. Rising over it you observe the armada of droids handling the stocks, coming and going in a waltz rhythm by the hum of engines.

“And now what?”

“Now we must find the aisle and the correct box.” He answers mimicking a shush.

“I can find the aisle.”

He frowns at you incredulous.

“I told you this toy was a gem!” You look up at the screen. “Row seven.”

You put your console back inside your bag and spy the droids.

“How are we gonna cross the room?” you mumble.

“Haven’t you done this before?”

“There weren't as many droids! I think they took on the fact that someone came behind their back…”

He shakes his head and observes the whole room. His gaze travels from the door to the droids, to the shelves.

“We are going to climb the shelves.”

Without giving you any time to protest, he walks to the first shelf, careful to stay out of sight of the droids and climb the ladder rapidly to the top. You grumble and follow in his trail, avoiding the mechas by passing behind diverse structures and climbing as fast as you could. at the top you measure the area between the two shelves.

“You know we can't jump such a distance, right?”

“We are not going to need to jump, we will use the wall.”

You turn your head to observe the reliefs of the motifs on the walls, you could indeed grasp your hands around and put your feet on the rails but… The surface is incredibly slim. You look down to see the ground and you get dizzy.

“I’m not sure about that.”

“You can stay here if you are afraid.” Without hesitation he places his hands on the wall and starts crossing the gape.

You gulp, you’re not sure those costumes are worth the broken bones you risk with that method, but you’re not a coward and you won’t let that chiss believe it.

You wipe off your hands on your pants and follow him. The surface appears even slimmer now that your weight is on it and you feel like this is gonna be really difficult.

Don’t look down, don't look down, you repeat like a mantra while progressing along the rails. If only the shelves weren’t so spaced out! You grip the embossing with all your might as you start feeling sweat run down your back and your temperature rising. Are you really risking only a broken bone if you fell? Your arms and legs start trembling at the middle of the crossing, in front of you Thrawn already traverses and waiting for you at the next shelf. It looked almost easy when he did it, why is it so difficult?

You stop as even your fingers are shaking with cold sweat running down between them.

“Why did I accept to help you, again?” You whisper.

“Because I know about your family.” He responds deadpan.

Son of a bantha! You feel ire rising in your veins and a new energy spreads through your muscles, you quickly close the gap and seize the hand he extended for you while digging your nails through his sleeve. He doesn’t react and turns himself to the next gap. You forgot there was still five of them. Damn it! You have to take your breath, this is exhausting…

As you stop your eyes travel through the room and you notice a pallet truck moving around. You study its path and calculate roughly when it will come next to your shelf. You step back and sprint to the ledge, as it passes you jump and land almost too far. You crouch and wave to Thrawn as it goes by. It is way quicker than crossing the gap! You laugh a little, realizing the situation is both thrilling and terrifying. You hold yourself to avoid trembling on this precarious balance and you can jump back to the seven shelf. As you turn back you see Thrawn imitates you with another forklift and joins you back.

“Good thinking.”

Without missing a moment he goes down the ladder and starts searching for the right box. You follow him and you quickly find the box you need.

“How are we gonna open it?” You ask “It’s sealed.”

“With this.” He takes out his Lieutenant plaque and inserts it into a port.

“Won’t they find out who opened it?”

“It is a blank plaque, it should not be a problem.”

You hear a click and the lid trembles a little before stopping, you both take one side and slide it.

“I didn’t know a plaque could serve like that!” You say.

“I found it out recently as well.”

Now opened, you could see a myriad of uniforms tightly folded. Without any tag you will need to eyeball each of them to find the good ones.

“They should be ranged by size.” Thawn says.

You both start searching and it takes you around twenty five minutes to find both uniforms and ten more to fold and place back the one you don’t need. You calculate mentally how long the false video recording is and realize you have little time to go back. Once done you put them in your bag and close the box.

Thrawn looks at his chrono.

“We should hurry, the race will soon end.”

You go back back on top of the shelf and jump again on a forklift. Thrawn is right behind you. His landing sends a vibration through the metal, nearly forcing you off the platform. Before you topple off the edge, Thrawn seizes your arms, pulling you tight against him. You can feel the warmth of his hand on your skin and it reminds you again of this fateful kiss. You clear your throat, uneasy. The first shelf arrives quickly and you jump back to safety and go down rapidly. The way back is spent mostly avoiding the cameras and lonely persons wandering the halls.

As you reach Thrawn and Eli’s room you collapse on Thrawn’s bed without asking permission with a long and relieved sigh.

“Finally! Safety!”

Thrawn leans over to seize your bag and takes out the uniforms to try his one again. He plants himself in front of the mirror to appreciate it and finds where to do touch-ups. He really wore it elegantly, you think. At this moment, Eli enters with a cry of victory, so much it startles you.

“We ended up in second place! I got to race ‘till the last lap!” He proudly announces.

You jump off the bed and hug him tightly. “Congratulations!”

As you separate, you notice out of the corner of your eyes Thrawn silently observing both of you.

“How did it go for you?”

“We’ve found them both, you will have to try yours.”

“Quickly then, I have to join the team again after!”

You then take the opportunity to pack your stuff and go to the door.

“I’m gonna sleep a little. I will come celebrate with you later Eli!”

As soon as the door closed behind you, Eli turned to Thrawn.

“Did you really have to steal them?”

“Of course not. I lied to test J.C.’s aptitudes.”

@exoplorationn, @bluechiss